Pneumatization of the articular eminence on cone beam computed tomography: prevalence, characteristics and a review of the literature.

MedLine Citation:

PMID:
21239574
Owner:
NLM
Status:
MEDLINE

Abstract/OtherAbstract:

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and characteristics of pneumatized articular eminence (PAT) by cone beam CT (CBCT) and to present a review of the PAT literature.METHODS: A retrospective study was performed using sagittal and coronal CBCT images of 514 patients in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, Ataturk University, Turkey. Age and gender were recorded for all patients and, for the cases of PAT, laterality and types were also recorded. The χ(2) test was used.RESULTS: Of the 514 patients, 41 (8.0%) had PAT, of whom 25 were female (61.0%) and 16 were male (39.0%). This difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). The age range of the patients with PAT was 15-62 years (mean 30.6 ± 11.4). Of the 41 patients, 31 (75.6%) had unilateral and 10 (24.4%) had bilateral PAT. 17 (41.5%) PATs were unilocular and 24 (58.5%) were multilocular.CONCLUSIONS: It is possible that PAT is a more frequent condition than is commonly perceived. In differential diagnosis of suspected cases or in cases for which surgical treatment is planned, panoramic radiographs should be supplemented with CBCT.